Retired Warrior
by MegaFlower
Summary: Gale Thunderstrom has retired as Celestia's personal captain, assassin, monster hunter, warrior or whatever you want to call him. His last task addressed to him was to protect a town called Ponyville from the recently active Evergreen forest and to train a pony do his new job. What could go wrong?
1. Prologue

Retired Warrior

Prologue

Where did it begin?

Gritting my teeth I dodge the flames spewing out of the enemy. A fully grown dragon to be exact.

It was enraged for multiple reasons. One of the reasons is that a dumb, stupid, idiotic filly that I had met recently decided to go into a deadly forest for adventure. Not only did she enter the dragon's cave but she also tried to fight it.

Oh Celestia when you told me that you were breaking up the Hunters of Equestria and forcefully making me retire too; I was livid. I thought at that point this couldn't get any worse, but no this day just happened to be the day I was getting all of my armor and weapons fixed stupidly thinking that this boring town didn't have any threats.

I may have been battered, burned, and tired, but this wasn't the first time I had fought a supposedly insurmountable foe and came out on top. Hell, this wasn't the first time I did battle with a fully grown dragon alone. In fact I had won those fights with ease, but in those fights I had armor, weapons, artifacts, and I wasn't tired from having to scour an entire forest trying to find a reckless filly who was now unconscious on my back! Ugh, why is this dragon so fierce.

It launched another fireball at me before rushing in to slice me up with it's claws. I dodged left then realized I mest up as it turned around and swung its tail. It hit me in the side launching me into the wall of the cave. Luickly the filly didn't hit the wall, but me. That's good.

The green dragon was slowly approaching me. You know dying to a fully grown dragon was not on my list for ways of death, but I guess it will do.

I remembered that the filly was with me and that I should at least get her out. Looking around the room I noticed that a small area strewn with plants, starw, gra….. that's it. The dragon is getting ready to lay eggs and that's why she's so aggressive. I can use this. If there's one thing that I remember about Celestia's rants about dragons is the way to act towards one as that was one of the only facts that seemed important.

I bowed my head as low to the ground and began speaking, "Milady I am terribly sorry for fighting you when you are due to lay eggs. I did not know and blindly attacked you when you were attacking my ... child. I wish for the fighting to stop and for you to at least have the mercy to spare her. She did not know and thought you were a threat."

At that point I was expecting to be cleaved in two, but when I looked up I saw the dragon gesture to pick up the filly and leave. I didn't expect both of us too be spared, but I am glad it happened. Who knows what would have happened if rainbow maned filly was left alone in the evergreen forest.

I bow my head respectfully and the proceed to put the filly on my back and trot. I leave the cave and head to a safe spot in the forest to rest a bit. By the time I found a spot to rest the filly on my back woke up. I placed her softly on the ground and rested my back against a tree.

"How did you do that?" The rainbow mained filly asked.

"Which part?" I ask back.

"All of it!" She replied with a little too much giddy for someone who almost died.

I spoke calmly, "Well I was able to find you, protect you from the dragon, attack the dragon, and negotiate with the dragon due to a job I recently had."

"What were you a warrior or a guard, no a royal guard!" She asked excitedly.

I found her enthusiasm a little overwhelming. The first time I almost died I was scared and stunned. "Well I could technically be called all of those. I was captain of the Hunters of Equestria!"

"Wait really?"

"Yes," was the only word I needed befor…

"Oh my gosh…. oh my gosh… oh my gosh, I am talking too and meeting the legendary, unbeatable Gale Thunderstorm!"

"You know me? Wait are those really words ponies us…"

"Of course I know you! My parents talk about you all the time. They say things like he's the best flier to ever live and no pony has ever beaten him in battle or race!"

"Whoa Whoa, slow down, I have a few questions and a few words that you NEED to hear."

"Alight, I'm calmed down now," she clearly wasn't. It's just she wasn't saying anything.

"What is your name? You never said."

"Me, I'm the amazing Rainbow Dash!" Then she did a little spin in the air.

She's physically okay, that's good. "Alright Rainbow Dash, who are your parents and where are they."

"Oh that's easy, their Windy Cloud and Thunder Hothoof, although my mom calls him Thunder Hothead, and their both Wonderbolts. Isn't that awesome! And their meeting with some friends in Ponyville."

"When did they get a child." I thought out loud.

"You know them!"

"Yeah they were in the Hunters of Equestria for a few years before leaving to find a life together. Next question, why are you here in the evergreen forest."

"I got bored and started looking for adventure when I heard ponies talking about how dangerous the Evergreen forest was and how glad they were to getting a guard for the place. I found an adventure so I went to the forest."

Huh, you wonder I've been getting deja vu. This is the exact same thing I used to do when I was a kid.

"Can I inspect you for any damage."

"Yes you can," She answered.

"Stay as still as possible."

When I began to poke and prod to find any injuries I was finally able to examine Rainbow Dash. She was a light blue pony that had a flowing, rainbow mane and a long rainbow tail. Her cutie mark on her flank was a cloud that had a rainbow colored bolt shooting out of it. Her wings were not fully grown yet and she had a surprising amount of muscle for a filly.

While I was doing this Rainbow Dash asked, "How did you know I went into the Evergreen forest?"

"I set up an artifact on the edge of the forest that would alert a device that would beep two different ways to say if anything entered or exited."

"Artifact?"

"You don't know what an artifact is?"

"No I don't."

"I'll tell you on our walk out of here now that we have rested up."

I explained to Rainbow Dash the very simple version of what an artifact is. "An artifact is an object created or imbued by magic to have a special property. It takes a skilled magic user to create them, but other than that most artifacts were easy to make."

Rainbow Dash asked curiously, "Could you make an artifact that increases the abilities of the user?"

"Only by a minuscule amount that wouldn't matter." Why did she have to ask a simple but dangerous question. Physical or magical enhancement can only be used in very miniscule degrees. No unicorn could increase their strength by two times or even a tenth times. Princess Clestia told me that she herself with all of her magic could increase her physical capabilities by half. However, their is an evil way to increase physical and magical and that way is banned by everything though some still do it for power.

"Then how do earth ponies magic increase their physical abilities?"

Wow, she's pretty smart for picking up on that, "Well it is actually really simple, their magic naturally does it. The same thing happens in pegasus. You see while earth ponies and pegasus can't control magic externally we can internally. Most ponies don't even realize it. When pegasus fly they use magic to keep them flying. Normally are wings would have to be much bigger if pegasus ever wanted to fly, but with magic a lot of impossible things are possible."

As I finished we finally walked out of the Evergreen forest and it was midday. "So where are your parents. We need to get you back to them."

"Ugh, but sometimes they are so boring, especially when they start talking to other people. And don't you need to get to the hospital or something like that."

"No I have never needed a hospital for a broken bone. They all naturally heal after some rest."

Rainbow dash just stared at me mouth wide open like she was looking for words to say.

I say with a not so straight face, "It's natural talent and practice makes perfect."

Rainbow dash laughed at that before saying, "How many bones have you even broken and I'm still not going."

I sigh, "I have probably broken every bone in my body five times. How long are you staying in Ponyville?"

"Another week, but why do you want to know?"

"If you go to your parents now and tell them what you did you can spend as much time with me as you want."

"Really?" I nodded, "Then let's go now!"

Rainbow Dash started to fly fast. Like faster than I could when I was her age. I started thinking that she could be a potential candidate for Celestia's last request. Finding a worthy guard for this place is going to be easier than I expected and maybe this town won't be that boring.

I sigh as I watch Rainbow Dash fly back towards me, "Why aren't you flying? We could be getting their faster.

I chuckle, "My regentive abilities may be amazing, but it won't repair my broken wing in a couple of hours."

"Oh yeah," Rainbow Dash blushed and started walking with me to wherever we were going.

The End

**Author's Note**

So my new story is going to about Gale Thunderstorm and Rainbow Dash. If your a fan of _My Little Pony _you may have noticed some changes to Rainbow Dash's parents and other things later on. I have two reasons for that.

I'm changing something so that it fits the story better.

I'm not a huge fan of the series so I won't know everything.

If you notice any glaring issues with the story tell me and all constructive criticism is welcomed. Tell me how your liking the story so far.


	2. A Reunion

Retired Warrior

Chapter 1

A Reunion

"How long will it take to get their?" I ask.

"I don't know. I always just flew their," Rainbow Dash replied.

"Where exactly is their?"

"You don't know where we're going, I thought you would know since we're going in this direction."

"I have been in Ponyville for one day. I am a smart pony, but I don't have enough knowledge of this town, yet, to know where anything is."

"Oh," she replied sheepishly, "Well we're going to Sweet Apple Acres."

"Why do you assume I know everything?"

"How could you miss it! It's a massive far. With tons of plants to grow stuff and things. The place isn't that cool or fun expect when they zap apples and cider."

"Zap apples and cider?"

"Yeah once a year for each event. The zap apples are rainbow colored and amazing while the cider is the best in the world."

"Really? While the zap apples sound interesting, I'll have you know the Hunters of Equestria have been all over the world and we have had some pretty good cider."

"Well you just have to wait and see the awesomeness of the cider."

We walked in silence for a minute before Rainbow Dash asked me a question, "What do the Hunters of Equestria even do? Like I know they hunt, but is that it?"

"Well as captain of the Hunters of Equestria I lead large groups of ponies to capture or eliminate threats. I personally have fought things like dragons, gryphons, ponies, a forest, manticores, a cockatrice, some bugbears, etc etc."

"How do you fight a forest?"

"Oh that was an interesting story. I was investigating a missing pony case which lead me to a magical forest. When I found the pony the forest tried attacking me. It was hilarious and terrifying. Anyway long story short I burned the forest down and Celestia scolded me for well burning a forest down."

"Can you back to the Hunters of Equestria,"

"Yeah. Anyways the Hunters of Equestria usually worked in groups of two to twenty depending on the threat level. Sometimes we needed the entire group of about 300 ponies like when we had to fend off an army of Timberwolves."

"Timberwolves?"

"Yeah those bastards are the worst. In packs of ten or twenty their really easy to deal with, however, if you don't deal with them properly they'll get back up. The Hunters of Equestria had to hold back a horde of ten thousand before help arrived. I didn't sleep for two entire days and we were almost overrun."

"That sounds tough."

"Oh it was, but I enjoyed every second of it."

"Why? If I didn't get any sleep I wouldn't enjoy any of it."

"The reason is I enjoy a good fight. No matter how one sided it is against me. The nickname I was given in the Hunters was Gale the insane. It was such a stupid name that it was perfect for me."

"It fits perfectly," Rainbow Dash said with a laugh.

"Doesn't it."

"Look were here."

"Hmm," was my only response.

Sweet Apple Acres was a nice farm. On my way her I noticed carrots, grapes, corn, and apples. Lots and lots of apples, though none of them were rainbow colored. Must be a seasonal thing.

On the farm was a three story barn house that was red with white outlines. The windows had floral on them and overall the place looked cozy.

"Come on, let's go and stop admiring the place!"

"Just be patient."

As I was walking to the door I noticed five ponies talking to each other. Their silhouettes show that there are three mares and two stallions.

When Rainbow Dash entered the house she called out, "Hey Mon, Hey Dad, I am back."

Two voices rang out, "Welcome back Rainbow Dash."

"I also brought someone who wants to meet you two."

"Do we know them?" That was definitely Windy Cloud.

"Then let's meet the pony," Yep, Thunder Hothoof was their.

When he went through the door he yelled out in surprise, "Captain?!"

"Gale Thunderstorm is here?" Windy Cloud asked before walking out of the door. Two other ponies walked out with her.

"Care to introduce your friends to me."

Hothoof shook his head before saying, "The stallion is Bright Mac, the mare is Butter Pear, and the old mare in their is Granny Smith."

"Hello," Pear said.

Bright Mac spoke, "Good morning."

Windy Cloud finally out of her confusion asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I have two reasons for that actually. One of which will be told by Rainbow Dash and the other by me."

Windy Cloud then asked, "Does one of the reasons explain why your bleeding and Rainbow Dash is dirty."

"Rainbow Dash's reason is the one that explains that."

"What did you do," both parents asked Rainbow Dash as if they expected that it was her fault.

"It was not all my fault, expect well... all of it." Then she proceeded to explain what happened in the Evergreen forest while I listened and corrected her over exaggerations.

"Let me get this straight," Thunder Hothoof said, "You went into the Evergreen forest alone, entered a cave, and then attacked a dragon. Why just why?"

"I wanted an adventure and I got one!"

While Thunder Hothoof was scolding Rainbow Dash Butter Pear asked Windy Cloud, "Is your daughter always like this?"

Windy sighed, "Sadly, yes."

Listening in on the question, Bright Mac added, "While our daughter is rowdy and adventurous, even she wouldn't do something as crazy and dangerous as that."

After Thunder Hothoof was done scolding Rainbow Dash he asked me, "So then what is your second reason for being here?"

I answered simply, "Celestia disbanded the Hunters of Equestria and requested me to guard over the evergreen forest."

Silence was the only answer I got. Seems that Pear and Mac know what that is.

"Are my ears lying or did you just say Celestia disbanded the Hunters." Windy said in disbelief.

"Your not hearing things, because I also heard that," Hothoof said.

Rainbow Dash then yelled out, "But why? The Hunters of Equestria are so cool and awesome."

"Yeah, why were they disbanded?" Windy wondered.

"Do you want the short or very long version?" I asked them.

"The very long version," Hothoof said with 100% certainty.

"I don't know when exactly Celestia started to want this, but I do know the event that caused it."

**Flashback**

Every single one of the Hunters of Equestria were recently called for a meeting in the royal castle by Celestia herself. That could only mean one thing. Bad news is all it could mean.

When all of us were accounted for and at the castle we all went to the Hunter barracks. This place was a huge two story building full of enough weapons and armor to equip an army ,which technically we were one.

When we got their one of Celestia's assistants called for me and me alone and said that everyone else should stay in the barracks. If she does this that means Celestia expects the news to be reacted to poorly. Oh no, when Celestia call for me alone than this bad news just turned into terrible news.

Entering into the throne room is always a slow experience, but today it was quick and efficient. Let's just hope that war isn't breaking out.

I bowed my head as I entered, since those were the customs. Then Celestia told me, "No need for the customs."

Please don't tell me discord escaped. "What you are here for is to hear a decision that I have been thinking about for many years."

Oh so it is not some overwhelming threat, that!s good. "I do not wish for this too drag on anymore, I will say it," if you wanted to say it then you didn't need that part, "it hurts me to do this, but I'm disbanding the Hunters of Equestria."

"What!" I yelled out loud not caring about my tone, "Why!"

"They are unneeded anymore. Most threats have been dealt with and were at a point in time where war is impossible since everyone is at peace."

"But we are needed! We keep the threats down and nobody else can replace us! If we are gone and a monster shows up then who will deal with it! Who could deal with it in time! The royal guard protect you! The military guards the boarders and the prisons! The police protect the ponies, but can't deal with monsters!"

I leave the throne room in a fit of rage. There is no point in arguing. As soon as Celestia makes a decision barely anything can change that.

I solemnly walk back to the barracks and as soon as I enter everypony gets into line. "What's the threat," somepony asks.

"There is no threat." I reply sadly.

Confusions rings out amongst the ponies, "What do you mean there is no threat?"

"Celestia brought us here, because she has come to the conclusion that… that… that the Hunters of Equestria aren't needed anymore."

Yelling, threats, sadness, and a commotion occur. I can tell everypony wants to stay, so I do what I do best. "Silence," everypony quiets and I feel tears falling down my cheeks, "It has been the best years of my life serving in the Hunters of Equestria. I've had fun, did my duty, lived, and most importantly been apart of the best group that ever existed," I start to see other ponies cry, "We all have a reason for being here and tomorrow we won't be here, but why think about that when we're still here! I want the biggest celebration to occur today her in the barracks! Buy food, drinks, whatever, start fights, laugh, share stories, and just enjoy the party! Because if we're going down we're going down with a bang!"

Everypony cheered and began to party all day and into the night.

**Flashback End**

"It was the greatest and saddest thing I have ever had the chance to be apart of," I continued, "The next the barracks were a mess with ponies asleep everywhere. When we all left none of us and I mean none of us cleaned up the mess, because technically we weren't employed anymore so it wasn't our jobs."

"Wow, just wow. That must have been amazing," Rainbow Dash said with starry eyes.

"It truly was."

"If you left in a fit then how did you know to come to Ponyville?" asked Butler Pear.

"Later I came back to Celestia to apologize and ask if she had any last requests that I could do."

"What exactly was Celestia's last request?" Windy Cloud asked suspiciously.

Bright Mac spoke, "I'm also generally curious about that too."

"Celestia told me to go to Ponyville and protect the town ponies from the evergreen forest and whatever came out of it. She also told me to find and train anyone to do that job."

Thunder Hothoof spoke, "Are you getting paid?"

"Yeah I am getting paid, but it wouldn't really matter anyways as I could probably sustain myself for the next three hundred years off my Hunter profits. Anyway, I'm going back to my house to rest. If anyone wants to visit it's the old rundown shack closest to the Evergreen forest."

And with that I said my goodbyes and left the house.

Wonder if I'll meet any Hunter again. Probably not, since most joined the other forces.

The End

**Author's Note**

Bam chapter finished. So if you noticed Applejack's parents aren't in a family feud, because I found that just stupid. They could have just been dead.

Anyway, looking for feedback and wondering if the chapters are too long.


	3. Needs Some Work

Retired Warrior

Chapter 2

Needs Some Work

Ahh a beauty, is what my new house would never be described as.

When the was about to mayor tell me about possible houses I could pick from, I told her to give me the closest house to the Evergreen forest. She looked at me like I was insane and tried to explain to me that the house was a mess and hasn't seen maintenance in years. But I told her I would just fix the house as it would be no problem for oddly I had built and fixed many houses as a Hunter of Equestria.

Anyway, the mayor's description of the house was an understatement to it's form. When she said it was a mess it was actually a dump. How is it even possible that anywhere I step the floor caves in? And when she said it hasn't seen maintenance in years she probably meant it hasn't ever seen maintenance. When I touched one of the walls it almost went down. It is a wonder that a light breeze hasn't blown it down.

The house was perfect. With a lot of work, and money, the house could become amazing, since even a rock can shine brightly with enough polish.

I started to examine the outside of the house since I only got to look around a bit before a fully ran into a forest she had no logical reason to be in. With my examination I noticed an old mailbox with it's post snapped barely hanging on. Funnily enough their was mail for me inside.

Hmm let's see a welcome form, a letter from Celestia, yes newspaper, ooh and a furniture catalogue. Wait was their a letter form Celestia? Should I read it now or later? I guess I should. The last time I didn't respond she didn't really like it. Opening the letter it read

"Dear,

Gale Thunderstorm

I hope you are not still upset over my recent decision.

Your princess,

Celestia,"

Ugh, why does she send letters that are one sentence. It's a waste of time and money. I had once received five letters form Celestia that were all one sentence, but connected with each other to make a paragraph. My head hurt after bashing it through a tree just from the thought of Celestia sending five different letters to me all at the same time.

Guests it's time to read up on the news. I picked up the newspaper and flipped it too the front and read the first line, "BREAKING NEWS" oh boy this better not be about me.

The next three pages were all about Gale Thunderstorm retiring and the end of the Hunters of Equestria. Can you report something I don't know, and how did the news get so fast? It was only supposed to be public in three days after the disbandment. Guess one of the Hunters blabbed.

Well none of the mail was useful to me so I guess it's time to set up my tent. I always brought a tent with me wherever I went and I don't think my house is stable enough to sleep in let only the bed in the house.

After setting up the tent I grabbed my bag and I set out towards the nearest restaurant. While ponies will notice my injuries I don't think they'll mention it.

I asked some ponies around town where the best place to get a hay sandwich was so I ended up at a nice looking restaurant called Hayton's Establishment. Turns out the owners name is actually Hayton. Why would anyone name their filly that?

When I sat down a waiter came up to me and asked, "What are you her for?"

"What's the biggest hay sandwich your establishment is willing to make?" I ask.

"Hmm, I don't know," he mumbled to himself, "Guess I'll ask the chef." He left into the back and came back saying, "The chef said he made a sandwich like this before for another big fellow like you and that it would be about a meter by a meter and a half a meter tall. Is that all that you want?"

"No, I will need a lot of water if you can," I stated.

"Of course," he replied and left.

When he came back he had a sandwich longer than him and what was basically a bucket of water. I paid for my food and he left.

I started devouring my food and just smiled. The last time I had a sandwich this good was when I went to that far out restaurant in a gryphon town. I can't remember the name, but damn did they serve surprisingly amazing food compared to the quality of the city.

In a few minutes there was nothing left and I decided to find a decent carpenter to fix up my new house or at least give me the materials to do so.

Leaving the establishment I walked around the turning slowly admiring the beauty of the town. Every house may have been the same with a patchwork roof and wooden walls, but each house had an individual flair from the ponies living their. Every house was similar but different and it was wonderful.

Most Canterlot snobs would hate this "horrendous" place for it's unorganized and non modern look. Which is basically the reason I hated Canterlot. Other than the castle and a few oddballs in the city everything had the same boring look.

Finally, after twenty minutes of exploration I stumbled upon a stallion named Fredrick Stonewall. He was dark orange with a short cut dark purple mane. His cutie mark was off course a brick wall and his tail was oddly long. We had a short conversation and after finding out he was a carpenter I asked a few questions.

"Would you be willing to help me fix up a house for me, with pay of course?" I ask.

"Hmm, I don't have any contracts or things planned this week so maybe," Fredrick stated, "What do you need help with?"

"Do you know the run down house closest to the Evergreen forest? Well I had recently moved to Ponyville and more specifically in that house."

"Why would you ever move into that mess?" Fredrick asked curiously.

"It's closest to me job and I always loved fixing something broken when I could buy it for cheaper," I said.

He stared at me with a blank face before stating, "Your very weird and I love it. Anyway, this job will take longer than a week and I'll get a contract ready tomorrow. Where would you want to meet?"

"I was recently at Hayton's establishment and it was amazing so why don't we meet their at 7:00 A.M.?" I asked.

He smiled and said, "Yeah that place is arguably the best ever in existence. Oh and I'll be there. Anyway got to go eat dinner see you tomorrow Gale."

We said are goodbyes and parted ways. I went back to my tent as I finally remembered the broken bones I had acquired recently. Huh, my ribs seem to already be mending. I'm still going to bed though. It has been a long day and my bed err tent is calling.

When I got to the tent two hours had passed and it was getting dark. I definitely didn't get sidetracked multiple times. Nope, not at all. As soon as I laid down I fell asleep like a brick. If a brick could fall asleep.

—

Fredrick Stonewall was having a great day. He got a big contract with a so far amazing Stallion and he was getting free dinner at Hayton's.

I ordered the largest sandwich and the largest amount of water I could and had a great time talking with the waiter, he was a good friend of mind.

Everything was fine until, "You know Fredrick someone else also ordered this same meal today."

"They did? Did they throw up eating it? Were they intimidated? What happened?" It was rare for any pony to order anything as large as he did and the sandwich was huge even for a big stallion like himself.

"Nope, he scarfed it down in a few minutes probably breaking your record," he said.

"Really!" I yelled out in shock. He nodded. "What did he look like?"

"Oh, he was very recognisable. The guy had a dark purple mane, was dark blue with a long swirling tail that had light blue stripes, his eyes were emerald green and he had a long scar coming down his left eye."

"Gale Stormwind!" I yelled out.

"What?"

"I am challenging him to an eating contest as soon as he gets her tomorrow!" I bellowed.

—

"Why do I get the feeling of being challenged?" Gale Thunderstorm said to himself.

"It is probably nothing."

Little did he know that this probably nothing would turn into the greatest of something's.

**Author's Note**

In this story I will be using bits as currency, but there's no way I'm calculating the prices for anything.

Anyway feedback would be appreciated. It


	4. Friends? Oh Yeah!

KRetired Warrior

Chapter 3

Friends? Oh Yeah!

Drifting my sleepy head over too the clock I see that it's 5:01 A.M. Guess the alarm was pointless. I mean what was I expecting; my habit of waking up early to suddenly disappear as soon as I "retire."

Uhh, should I do my morning exercises or explore the Evergreen forest. The forest would be interesting to explore, but I can always explore it later. I start pulling out the restriction bands and weights from my bag. Theses things are used on prisoners and captured creatures so that they don't run away. I love the way ponies look at me with a confused look.

Anyway, daily, morning exercises are a nice way to start the day for me and waste an hour. Stretches, a thousand push-ups, a thousand sit ups, standing on hind legs and jumping a thousand times, running a mile as fast as possible. These are just normal occurrences for my daily exercises. Some may call it torture, mainly the Hunters of Equestria on mandatory training day, but I call it the best way to start the day.

After I finished I look at the clock and it reads 6:17: A.M. When I take off the training "tools" I noticed the absolute mess of a state that my yard is in. Grass is torn up, some of the ground is cracked, and is that a hole where I was jumping? Looking closer I notice it indeed is a hole approximately 0.5 meters down. How did I not notice this? Whatever, I guess I'll need to ask Fredrick for a training ground.

Time to got to Hayton's establishment. On my way there I felt like I was forgetting something. As I got their Fredrick was already there with two massive sandwiches and what looked like plans.

"Hey, Fredrick I'm here." I call out.

"Perfect," he replied.

"What's perfect?" I ask.

"So recently, yesterday, I heard that you ate the deluxe hay sandwich."

"Is that what it was called?"

Fredrick spoke, "Yes and not only that, but my friend says you ate it extremely fast. Is that correct?

"I mean I guess I did eat the sandwich in a few minutes. Why do you want to know?" I replied. At this point everypony was staring at Fredrick and I.

"I Fredrick Stonewall challenge you to an eating competition for the title of the fastest eater in Ponyville! Loser has to pay for the food and any extra the participant may want afterward!"

When he spoke those words a grin sketched across my face as I thought of the free food I was soon going to get, "I Gale Thunderstorm accept your challenge for the title of fastest eater!"

Then a brown stallion with an orange main and apron that says, "The best chef is her!" came out to explain the rules. "If you don't already know I am Hayton and I own the place. Anyway, the rules for this competition are simply. You can't interfere with the other contestant, you must eat the entire sandwich to win, and the fastest to eat the deluxe sandwich wins. On the word go you may begin."

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

And then everypony their said, "Go!"

—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—

When Fredrick quote on quote faster eater in Ponyville ordered two deluxe hay sandwiches, I absolutely knew something was going down.

The only time he ordered two was when he was having a food eating competition. Sometimes he did it for fun, sometimes he did it for free food, but this time he did it for the title of fastest eater in Ponyville. I still don't know why he wants that tile.

I never knew any creature that could eat as fast as he could until yesterday when Gale Thunderstorm showed up. He ate the deluxe hay sandwich as fast or faster than Fredrick and it looked like he wasn't trying. It blew my mind thinking another pony could do that.

But at the moment the two stallions in front of me eating their sandwiches like starved beasts is what's blowing my mind now. Those sandwiches can barely be finished in an hour for a normal pony, but right now their your average sandwich. Before I stop being amazed both of them finished the sandwich at the same time!

Ugh, how do I call this?

—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—

When Hayton called stop I looked down and realized I finished my sandwich already and it's only been a minute. Was it so good that I didn't even realize I was done.

Turning my head I noticed Fredrick has also finished! Was it before or after?

"Who won?" we both asked at the same time.

"Well I don't know how to rule this, but you both finished at the same time so I guess you both won and lost."

"Does that mean thee Fredrick Stonewall tied in an honorable duel?"

"Yes, Fredrick you tied."

Fredrick burst out laughing before saying, "Then we'll both pay for the others food!"

He stared at me and I replied, "That seems fair."

For the next hour or so we both ate up what was equivalent to a feast, while we talked about the contract.

"I'm going to need to see the house before I can tell you the exact details for what we'll need to fix up the house."

"Should we go now?"

"I don't see why we shouldn't so let's go." When he packed up all of his things and made his way to the door he spoke, "By the way you smell worse than rotten garbage."

"That's what I was forgetting. It was caused by my daily exercises. Oh that reminds me, I need to get a wide open area for training since the field I was at got wrecked."

"First off, I am not a landscaper and secondly how badly could you damage a field in a day?" The field came into view and Fredrick just stared. "Your "exercises" must be hellish."

"Huh, that's exactly what the Hunters of Equestria always said. Please it's only an hour or two long."

"So you are or were the captain of the Hunters of Equestria," Fredrick stated as he connected the dots.

"You have heard of the Hunters of Equestria?" I asked curiously

"Who hasn't? The Hunters are easily the most popular out of Equestria's forces and it has been all over the news. You are also the most recognizable warrior to. The slayer of everything and anything, a monster in disguise, and the unstoppable force."

"Is that really some titles that I have? Sure I can see unstoppable force, but monster in disguise is stretching it. Where did you hear that from a Hunter of Equestria."

"Yes actually."

"Who?"

"I forgot their names, but a group of four stallions and two mares came to Hayton's establishment once and complained about mandatory training day coming up. It was hilarious."

"It's not so bad."

He looked at me with an eyebrow raised, "From the look of the field I'd say that's a lie or your standard is far above everypony else."

When we got to the house Fredrick inspected every knock and cranny of the house before giving me a synopsis of the place, "To put it simply, it would be easier to knock the house down and start from scratch, but I don't think you'll want that so it should take only a month to fix the place."

"Only a month? I'd think it would take longer."

"Nah, the house is falling apart, but it's small so it won't take too long. Anyway, I'll meet you at noon tomorrow with supplies for fixing up the place. Can you fix things?"

"I have fixed so many destroyed houses from collateral damage that I would consider myself an expert in the field."

"Great, and I have been wondering why are you here in Ponyville? It isn't really a glamorous place, or crazy dangerous."

"Ah well, when I retired Celestia asked me to protect this town since the Evergreen forest is supposedly dangerous and is "acting up" or whatever that means."

He smirked, "Guess I can sleep calmly knowing that the monster in disguise is protecting Ponyville."

I sighed

He laughed and said before leaving, "Were also doing that challenge again and I am reclaiming my glory!"

I laughed at that, "Anywhere, anyplace."

Guess it's time to explore the Evergreen forest.


	5. The Forest? Yeah It's Bad

Retired Warrior

Chapter 4

The Forest? Yeah It's Bad

The Evergreen forest was surprisingly not that bad unless you counted what's in the forest. The forests itself has a few poisonous plants, but none of them are that bad. Take the poison joke for example. Sure it causes some crazy affects like shrinking you, but it isn't deadly at all. The only challenge the forest gives you is that everything looks the same except for a few landmarks.

Creatures in the forest, on the other hand, is where this forest goes from not that bad to how is Ponyville still standing? Like seriously, in only a few hours I found a chimera, a group of manticore, parasprites, a sea serpent, though he was nice, a lot of adult dragons, why are they even here, and that isn't even all of them.

If Celestia says that the forest is "acting up" I'm hoping she meant that one or two monsters left the forest, because it would probably take months or even years for the Hunters of Equestria to clear out this forest. And I'm here all by myself, well except Thunder Hothoof and Windy Cloud but they might not be ready for battle anymore.

Now that I think about it more, why haven't a mob of creatures destroyed Ponyville yet. There are plenty of monsters that would love some ponies as a snack or even destroy the village for the fun of it. It wouldn't even be that hard. I heard that Ponyville has never had a guard ever and most ponies their look like they couldn't do anything in a fight.

The only thing that can attract or restrain so many creatures is… of course! A powerful artifact! It all makes sense! Most monsters are attracted to powerful sources of magic. Hell, some monsters eat magic to survive, and that's why there are so many dragons here. What are two things that can be used to hatch dragon eggs, magic and very hot temperatures.

Though, the kind of magical artifact that could attract this many monsters has to very powerful. Either way it could be dangerous if any pony ever found it and they were evil. When I was thinking of known relics that could do this I immediately knew my course of action due to a previous experience.

One of the only times I encountered a magical artifact like this was with Sankin the Devourer. It was many years ago when I was given an enormous task for only the best of the Hunters of Equestria to take. Celestia had described to me a mare who had found The Crown of Power and whore it. She told me that the crown gives the user more power for everything that the user drains.

When we arrived in the area Sankin was located we were all shocked. The once lushish jungle was now a barren wasteland littered with the bones of monsters. Nothing could stop the horror from seeping in destroying our chance of survival. The only thing that kept us going was what would happen to Equestria, Canterlot, our families if we left since we were afraid? In only a week Sankin had garnered the title devourer and destroyed an entire rainforest as far as the eye could see.

At that point we knew that were probably going to die, but we'll die saving Equestria. In the end only I survived using the last of my strength to end her rampage, but the worst part of the experience is that Sankin was a filly who was crying throughout the fight telling us to end her. She had no control of her actions. I shudder at the thought of ever experienced no that again.

I jumped up, flapping my wings, and flew through the leaves. I have to figure out what the artifact is. Let's see if anything sticks out. For the next three hours I fly around the area scanning and searching for anything when I finally see a castle.

This castle was in shambles. From what I could see at first some walls had fallen down, towers had collapsed, and everything was covered in dirt and dust. Banners were torn and tattered, but on closer inspection had the insignia for both Celestia and Luna.

Huh, The Castle of the Two Sisters is located in the Evergreen Forest. The only one who would probably know of this is Celestia, so that means she hid or left something powerful here.

As I entered the castle I quickly came upon a room with what I was looking for and sighed a sigh of relief. Two pedestal with one on top the other that had five arms jutting out holding a single circular stone in each and at the top a large circular stone. Each of the stones had a single symbol of a star shaped gem on them.

Thank Celestia it's just the Elements of Harmony. I guess their won't be any need to protect them since the only way to activate them is to have very well bonded creatures with each quality of the stone. Laughter, generosity, kindness, loyalty, honesty, and magic are the elements.

It always bothered me that the six elements were well those elements. Magic is something I can see, but laughter is a stretch. Aren't love, respect, and compassion also things needed for a relationship. I could never figure out why the elements were that way since whenever I asked Celestia she would just leave.

Ehh whatever, with such an absurd and improbable chance of these ever activating again their won't be any need to guard these. The elements are practically useless when used by creatures with incompatible traits.

As soon as I left the castle I realized it had turned nighttime. Guess it is time to head back. I didn't bother walking back as it would have taken too long. On my way to my tent I took the time to look at the stars. Just staring into the night sky always calms me down. Stargazing was the first thing I did when I learned how to fly. At the time I thought if I flew far enough I could reach and grab a star.

When I got back to my tent I put away my stuff entered my tent and went to bed.

**Author's Note**

I find it funny how I just realized that the Evergreen forest is actually called the Everfree forest in MLP. I mean I'm not going to change it since I'm too lazy, but I don't even know how I messed up.

Anyway feedback and suggestions are welcomed.


	6. Challenges and Food

Retired Warrior

Chapter 5

Challenges and Food

I had a confused face when Fredrick came to me during my daily exercises saying he had collected the materials to start building.

"You already have everything we need to fix my house?"

Fredrick spoke proudly, "Yes, I got it all ready yesterday."

"All of it?"

"Everything we'll need."

"How? Shouldn't that take longer than a day?"

"It's a skill I picked up. I always prepared to do work and I can do it at a moments notice. We just have to bring it all here from my workshop."

"How far away is your workshop."

"It isn't that far except for the fact it's on the other side of Ponyville which should make it a pain to deliver."

"Pshh, this will be easy. Some of the deliveries I had made were on the opposite side of Equestria,"

"You can carry all of the supplies even after your exercise, which to any sane pony would realize is torture in disguise."

"Yeah, like I said easy."

"Really, than how about a bet."

"A bet?"

"When we get to my workshop I will give you an hour to get everything to your house. If you succeed I'll pay for," Fredrick looks at my clock, "Breakfast. If you don't you'll pay for breakfast."

"Deal!"

After the deal was made we traveled through Ponyville and to the outskirts of the village was. When he said his workshop was on the opposite side of the Ponyville he wasn't lying. It took twenty minutes of walking at a brisk place.

The workshop is large and that was probably the reason it's far away. The place itself was thirty meters wide, fifty meters long, and two stories. It was more of a warehouse than workplace. The inside had a massive storage area for the materials and tools. It was well kept and organized in detail.

"You have a nice place. Did you buy it yourself?"

"No, my father had it before he died."

"Huh, so when should we start the challenge."

"I have two carts. I load one up now and that's when we start. While you're bringing that one I'll load up this one."

When he finished I saddled up and began running as fast as I could, while also flapping my wings. In ten seconds I was off the ground cart in tow.

—

I thought I'd be getting a free lunch, but Gale Thunderstorm just had to prove me wrong.

The challenge would have been impossible if you went on foot. Corners that at to sharp to turn, ponies blocking places, and their being no straight road from here to his house.

Easiest free lunch I thought as I saw Gale run out of my workshop. That was until he and the cart started flying. Now I have seen some weird things in my life, but one of the weirdest is when Pegasus pull carts into the air at slow speeds. It confuses my how that happens and it is so rare that I didn't think Gale could do it.

When I did see him take off I was in shock for a few seconds before deciding to contemplate it later as I would need to load up the cart.

I sighed, "Looks like I'll be paying for breakfast."

—

Ahh, It has been a while since I've last down this. It may look or seem uncomfortable, but in truth it's fun carrying ponies or things. Any Pegasus that can do this has always liked it.

It's a challenging technique for a Pegasus to get down, but once you figure it out the rest comes naturally. All you have to do is spread the inner magic that allows a Pegasus to fly to the object your pulling. Though, the technique is practically useless for anything, but this one specific instance. I have found other useful ways for the technique to be used so it isn't totally useless.

In five minutes, I made it to my house and unpacked everything on the destroyed field and started my way back. On my way back I noticed some ponies on the ground gawking while others seemed to not care at all. Huh, wonder why their reactions are so different.

When I got back to Fredrick's workhouse I noticed that he wasn't finished packing up, so I said, "Need any help?"

"Ahgh," he screamed startledly, "How are you already back? It has only been five minutes."

"I'm just fast."

"And that stupid flying a cart method," he sulked, "Since your already back be useful and help me load."

"Your right. I should work more so that you have to pay for more food!"

Fredrick groaned.

In the next fourth-seven minutes I had completed my challenge and won myself an all you can eat breakfast. "So do you know any good breakfast places," I asked.

"It isn't technically a breakfast place, but a newly opened desert place opened up and what is a better way to start a day than a piece of cake."

"A blueberry muffin."

Fredrick raised his eyebrow and asked, "You think a muffin is a better way to start the day than cake."

"It's the best way to start the day!"

"I am hearing blasphemy!" He slammed his hood into the ground, "Nothing is better than cake and the infinite, delicious possibilities that can be done!"

"Muffins are short, sweet and can be stored way better than cake could ever be! Muffins out classes all food and nothing will change my mind!"

"You want to bet?" Fredrick said with a gleam in his eye, "I bet that I could eat more cake than you can with muffins. Winner deems the best dessert." He stops before mumbling, "But we will need a judge."

"Other than the fact I think you have a problem with challenging ponies, I accept this challenge! I'll even pay for my muffins so that you don't go broke for how many I can

eat. You'll still have to pay for my breakfast another day."

"Gale why are you being challenged to an eating competition?" A familiar mare voice asked.

"You see Rainbow Dash, Fredrick here said cake is better than muffins, but that's obviously false! I rebuked his claim and he challenged me to an eating competition. We need a judge and you can be it."

"Why and that sounds so boooring."

"What if I give you something for being the judge?"

Rainbow Dash perked up and said, "You'll have to tell me you cool story as a Hunter of Equestria. No I want the coolest story."

"Alright, but after the competition."

"Wait, what does a judge even do?"

Fredrick than chimned in, "A judge looks out for cheaters, and in this challenge will determine how many muffins are equivalent to one cake, since cake is usually bigger."

"Are we going to Sugarcube Corner?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"You know the place?" Fredrick inquired.

"Yeah, I went there yesterday with my parents and their friends. It has some really good dessert."

After a couple of minutes of walking we finally arrived. Sugarcube Corner was the embodiment of a gingerbread house. The walls were normal, but the roof was brown with sprinkle like color splotches on it. The edges were glazed white and a spire jutting out from the top had cupcake frosting for a roof.

As I entered a delicious smell came to me. The counter had a glass section to show off pastries and other sweet things. Everything was designed with candy and dessert in mind. To sum it all up, the place was cozy.

At the counter was a long, thin stallion with a cake shaped cutie mark. He had an orange, droopy tail and an orange, spiky mane. He was wearing a bow tie and a chef hat.

"Hello, my name's Carrot Cake. What can I do for you today?" He asked.

"How many cakes and muffins do you have?" Fredrick said.

"Well I don't know the exact amount, but their is probably enough."

"Alright then, I'll have twenty of any kind of cakes you have." Fredrick said.

Rainbow dash gaped at him, "How could you possibly eat so much?"

I said, "And I have 150 of any muffin kind you have." Rainbow Dash gawked at me.

After paying for the desserts we found a table near the counter. "Rainbow Dash, tell usthe rules for this competition since you are the judge."

"Uhhhhhhhhhhhh… the first one to puke or give up loses!"

Then Fredrick asked, "What if one of us gives up, but the one who gave up eating ate more?"

"Then uhh… uhh… the pony… no… oh yes, I got it! Five muffins will be the equivalent of one cake!"

After a bit of waiting, Carrot Cake delivered most of the deserts, but said there will be a delay for the others. With that we began are competition with Rainbow Dash judging. 327 muffins and sixty-five cakes later and I had barely won the completion.

"You know, both of you are crazy. Both of you are like a thousand years old and yet your able to eat more food in one meal than I could in a week." Pointed out Rainbow Dash.

"I may be old," spoke Fredrick, "But I have trained everyday in my life to eat this food."

I stared at Rainbow Dash, "When you haven't eaten in days or weeks you start to appreciate food, and when I say appreciate I mean eat as much as possible."

"Whatever, so can you tell me the cool story now!"

"Nahhhhhh, when we get to my house we'll sit down and then I'll tell you the story."

"Then let's go!"

When we got to my house Fredrick asked, "Are you going to help or are enough going to just sit their and tell your story."

"I'll help you when I finish, or when I feel like it. Besides I'm paying you to fix my house."

"Yeah I guess."

Then Rainbow Dash asked, "What the story about? Is it an adventure? A battle?"

"Patience, I'll tell you when we sit down."

Rainbow Dash immediately sat down and I followed. I spoke, "How did you get your cutie mark?"

"Aren't you supposed to tell me a cool story?" Rainbow Dash said impatiently.

"Later after you finish."

"Okay, but you better tell me. Anyways, I got my rainbow lightning bolt cutie mark form performing a super cool trick called a sonic rainboom. I did the trick when I was in a race for my friend, because she was being bullied. Alright I finished, so tell me your story!"

"My story is about how I got my cutie mark."

"How could a cutie mark story be your coolest story?"

"Oh, you have no idea."


	7. A Cutie Mark Story

Retired Warrior

Chapter 6

A Cutie Mark Story

The cutie mark I was talking about was, of course, the one I had. It was a cracked, burnt, frozen, scratched, and broken shield with a silhouette of a filly sleeping in the middle. The shield was a mess, but the filly was safe.

"Your ready to hear my story," I asked.

"Yeah, I have said this a million times already!"

"Alright, alright, my story began when I had recently finished my training to become a knight. You see I was a blank flank and lived in a town close to a hotspot of monsters and trouble. Daily patrols and nightly watches were necessary for the town's safety. The town was old and a bit run down and most ponies their weren't happy with their situation."

Rainbow Dash interrupted, "Wait if they weren't happy with living their then why did they stay? It seems dumb if you don't like living their."

"It's very simple why no pony left. They couldn't even if they wanted to. The town was surrounded by dangerous mountains that only a select few could travel through. One of those ponies was me."

"Then why didn't you leave? If the town was so bad then wouldn't it be okay for you to leave?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Well if I left the town would probably be destroyed. Remember how I was one of the few who could reliably travel through the mountains. The times I did travel through them was for food and supplies for the town. You see, it's in my nature to protect and save others and I owed the town for what they did for me."

"What did they do for you that was so important that you would spend your life protecting them?"

"I was an orphan they found one day their as a baby. The town was falling onto bad times and they could have just left me to die, but they didn't and I was grateful."

"I guess that makes sense," Rainbow Dash said.

"Anyway, three day after I finished my training horrible news came to the town. A wave of monsters that couldn't be stopped was headed for the town," Rainbow Dash's eyes widened, "Yeah we were going to die if we stayed and if we left most would die from the mountains."

"That's horrible. Did anyone survive?" Rainbow Dash almost seemed hesitant to ask that question.

I smiled, "Most of us survived due to a plan I had. Some of the guards would stay behind to slow down the monsters, while the ponies that could travers the mountains would guide every pony else. I even volunteered to be one of the ponies to stay behind, but the mayor of the town told me that I was too young and full of potential to stay behind."

"Who did stay behind?" Rainbow Dash asked quietly.

I frowned, "A group of twenty-one ponies. Two of whom I knew personally, the town mayor and the orphanage caretaker. I never saw them again, but they died what they loved doing, protecting other."

"Oh."

"Uhaaaaa, the guides and the group coming with mostly only packed the necessary. Food, water, and clothes for the cold temperatures. We set of soon afterward and began the trek through the mountains. Surprisingly the mountains were perfectly calm. It was the easiest path has ever been. That was until massive blizzard started. It became hard to see and are movements slowed, but I was so glad we got out of their quickly afterward. All of us were safe and we set up a camp to rest."

"Why were you so happy you escaped when you did? You made it sound like you just passed something terrible,"

"We did pass something terrible. You ever hear of Windigoes. The ghost like frost horses that are attracted to large amounts of negative emotions."

"Who hasn't heard the Hearth's Warming Eve tale. The Windigoes in the story almost destroyed Equestrian due to the rivalry between the three tribes.

"Well the Windigoes are real and so is the story."

"Wait really, but there wasn't a large amount of negative emotions in your story to cause their arrival."

"Yes I know that, but have you ever wondered where Windigoes come from. They don't just appear out of nowhere. Who ever founded the town just so happened too found the town where Windigoes live, and I have had the displeasure of facing Windigoes and at the time couldn't do anything to them."

"It's cool to learn about Windigoes and stuff, but why does that matter? You said it yourself that your group made it out safely."

"I wish that was the case and I thought we were all safe. Until a mare screamed in distress that her daughter was missing. At the mention of that the guides all started searching for her, but we didn't find her."

"Does that mean she was lost in the…"

"Storm. Yes and not only that it just happened to be the day of frost," Rainbow Dash stared curiously, "The day of frost was a day the town came up with. It was when the Windigoes fury unleashed with no bounds causing the worst blizzard of the year."

"What happened next?" Rainbow Dash asked worried?

"As soon as I realized the filly was in the storm I yelled out I was going back in and started putting on the heavy duty winter clothes. By the time I finished my preparations the storm had gotten terrible. It became almost impossible to see, hail began to fall, and temperatures dropped well below freezing."

Rainbow Dash then began to ask a lot of questions, "Did you find her? Was she safe? Were you safe? What happened? How did unit happen? Did you fight things? Why didn't you fly?"

"Calm down and listen. I had found the filly after thirty minutes of searching. The Windigoes, ironically, helped me find her since there glowing bodies were circling around her. It was basically the only thing I could see that wasn't a meter in front of me. When I got there I was bruised, bleeding, cold, and tired. I didn't care, because I had a filly to save. She was shivering, but that meant she was alive. I picked her up and put her on my back. I used my wings to guard her body from hail."

"Did she survive?" Rainbow Dash asked quietly.

"She survived and was healthy afterward, but please stop interrupting."

"Okay, Thanks."

"Picking her up caused the Windigoes to follow me. All of them were following me which made the storm worse and colder. One painstakingly trek back and I was practically frozen solid. Moving was impossible and I thought it was the end. Until a surge of energy filled my body and soon I moved cracking the ice surrounding me. It was a miracle. While it didn't numb the pain, it gave me the strength to move and shortly afterward the Windigoes left. Barely anything made me more relieved after this experience."

"Wow, that is a cool story!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

I laughed at the unintentional pun, "Do you want to hear the funniest part?"

"Of course I do!"

"I got to the camp and told the other guides that I found the filly and that she was between my wings. It took two stallions to break my wings out of the ice when I was near the fire and they found out that the filly was asleep and perfectly fine, while I was almost frozen solid."

Rainbow Dash was laughing when she asked, "So then how did you get your cutie mark? Was it during the adventure of later."

"I got it during my "adventure" and I didn't even notice it until one of the guides pointed it out. He laughed it off and said it fit the situation perfectly. It did and I always assumed that my sudden burst of energy was due to it, but I'll never truly know."

"You think it isn't the cause?"

"Oh I think it is, but I can never really know. Unless my cutie mark tells me, but I don't see that happening ever."

"Thanks for telling me the story. It was really cool and awesome of you for doing this."

"It's fine, besides I promised and I never really get a chance to talk about these kinds of things."

"Is this the reason you founded the Hunters of Equestria? To stop this situation from happening again." Rainbow Dash asked insightfully.

"Yeah, as a filly I always wondered why there wasn't a task force specifically meant for taking care of creatures. It made no sense to me and this event only magnified that. Eventually that wonder led me straight to Celestia for a request."

"Was it that easy? You just asked Celestia and she said yes." Rainbow Dash asked.

"Not at all, it wasn't as easy to just ask Celestia and she said yes. No I had to pass multiple tests, prove my skills, and gain support. It wasn't easy at all, but I eventually did it and that was the greatest thing I have ever did."

"Wait a second, isn't the Hunters of Equestria like a hundred years old?" Rainbow Dash asked with a confused look on her face.

"Yes, why?" I asked curiously.

"Then doesn't that make you over a hundred years old! How are you still alive!" Rainbow Dash yelled out.

I started laughing, "Psshhhhh, I have no idea. After the first few decades even Celestia was confused on how I was barely aging. She still doesn't know till this day and neither do I."

"Ughhhhh, whatever that's so confusing to think about, but this does remind me of something. I was wondering if we could explore the Evergreen Forest together since I had a lot of fun last time!"

"Did you ask your parents?"

Rainbow Dash smiled proudly, "I did actually and they said I could if you said yes."

"Sure we can explore the forest together tomorrow. Just don't forget to tell your parents."

"Alright!"

Then Fredrick chimed in, "Gale are you ever going to help today!"

"Nahh, but I will be paying you extra."

Fredrick grumbled.


	8. An Adventure of a Lifetime

Retired Warrior

Chapter 7

An Adventure of a Lifetime

I can't believe it at all. I just can't believe that I'm going on an adventure through the Evergreen with the coolest Pegasus ever. Ever pony in Cloudsdale is going to be so jealous.

Gale Thunderstorm is basically a living legend in Cloudsdale. Every pony their knows the stories of Gale. A lot of ponies would give anything to meet Gale, and I get to go on an adventure with him. It may not be as cool as any of his achievements, but it is much better than with my parents.

They may be the best parents ever, but they are so boring. They never let me explore the places we visit. Their excuse is always, "It's too dangerous," and, "When you're older we will allow it." The place we visit are never dangerous at all. I only ever got to places like Ponyville and Canterlot. The Evergreen forest is the only place that I've been to that is dangerous.

Though with this adventure, they will see that I'm ready for adventure and danger. They do dangerous things as Wonderbolts, why can't I?

—-—-—-—-—-—

By the time I ate breakfast and did my daily exercises, Rainbow Dash had already got ready and had a bag on her back. She was currently waiting impatiently. When I finished and got ready she looked bored.

"Alright let's go."

"Yeah, you finally finished!"

"I didn't take that long."

"It took you an hour and a half to eat and exercise."

"Well then you shouldn't have gotten here so early."

"I know that, but I was so excited for this adventure that I woke up early and couldn't get back to bed."

We finished talking and walked into the Evergreen forest. "Alright I am setting up a few rules that you must follow. Got it?" Rainbow Dash nodded, "Ruleone, don't touch any plants that I don't. Ask if you want to. Rule two, don't fight anything unless I say so."

"Wait, you are letting me fight things? My parents would never allow me to do that."

"Oh, you'll probably fight nothing. You are young and can't handle much, so you won't be doing much. If there is something you could theoretically take and you want to fight it. I'll allow it."

"Awesome!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she did a loop in the air.

"And rule three, do everything I say to do. Don't ignore or break any orders." Rainbow Dash simply nodded

And after that we began are "adventure." We traveled around the forest for three hours. We encountered many creatures and monsters. Rainbow Dash somehow found an old fire proof shield that she wanted to keep. Eh, finders keepers not like any pony will miss it. I fought off a manticore while Rainbow Dash cheered from the sidelines. It was a short fight.

When Rainbow Dash said she was tired, we traveled to the Castle of the Two Sisters for rest and food. "I have two things to ask." Rainbow Dash said.

"Ask away." I simply responded.

Rainbow Dash spoke curiously, "How are you so energetic and not tired at all? You have been doing hard physical tasks for four hours."

I chuckle, "That's very simple to answer. I've been doing this everyday for years at a time. At first when I started the Hunters of Equestria this would be my limit of how much I could do in a day. Now it's easy as breathing. What was the other thing?"

"You know your story about your cutie mark and your town?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Anyway, you know how your town was destroyed?" Rainbow Dash then began to speak with each word louder than the last, "If events like that are happening in Equestria the why did Celestia disband the Hunters of Equestria? Wouldn't it be better for the Hunters to stay!"

I sighed, "Their hasn't been an event like that in five decades. That fact is mainly due to the Hunters of Equestria, but monster threats are happening less and less. That trend started years ago and it doesn't seem like it will stop. Celestia probably thought that the other forces could take care of the monster problems that arise."

"If that's the case then why are you anger that Celestia disbanded the Hunters of Equestria."

"In my personal opinion as a leader and warrior, I think that the other forces are incompetent."

"Really? Why?"

"Yep, the three other main forces in my opinion are incompetent. While I am not saying that they don't do their jobs correctly, it is just that they wouldn't be able to handle most monsters without some casualties. The reason I think this is simple. We haven't had a war in almost a century and we are at peace with all of our neighbors so the military has grown lazy. The police do their jobs perfectly, but most crimes committed are small theft and small things that could be handled with an apology or a fine."

"What about the royal guard? Aren't they strong since they protect Princess Celstia?"

"You would think that, but I know that they are the worst out of the three. They may train, have mock battles and have practice break ins, but not in my entire life have I ever seen the royal guard ever stop a real threat. The police may mostly stop small things, but at least they do things. The military may seem the worst, but even though their lazy they generally care about protecting Equestria and take training semi-seriously."

Rainbow Dash, with a shocked expression, said, "The military, police, and royal guard are really weak. Was it like this back a century ago?"

"No not at all. It was the complete basically the opposite. At the time Equestria was at war. All of the forces took things seriously and trained harshly. It was an awful time to live in. The war was… zzzzzztttt."

I stopped, lifted my front, right leg, and stared at my indicator. Damnit, just my luck that a creature is coming out of the Evergreen forest when I'm not their. At least I have my stuff this time.

I speak quickly, "A monster has just come out of the Evergreen forest and I need to go now. Grab your stuff and my stuff then fly back to Ponyville. I lifted myself into the air and then shot through the air.

Hopefully the monster is nothing dangerous, but knowing my luck that won't be the case.


	9. A Problem

Retired Warrior

Chapter 8

A Problem

The wind rushed past me as I climbed higher and higher into the sky towards Ponyville at speeds baffling to most Pegasus. It should take approximately one minute to get to Ponyville at this speed, but that won't be enough. Plenty of monsters could cause a lot of damage in a minute.

After reaching an appropriate height, I started flying downward at an angle. Soon after Ponyville came into view and so did the monster. Though it would be monsters in this case.

I scowled, it just had to be these wooden bastards that are timberwolves. Twelve of them slowly creeping out of the forest. Why wouldn't the monsters be something I have unfavorable memories with? Assessing the situation, I saw the timberwolves crouching down like they were sneaking. Not in my entire life have I seen timberwolves have any intelligent thought unless they had a… leader.

I'll deal with that later because right now I have scouts to deal with. Rushing to the ground I slam into a Timberwolf completely shattering it. Before they had any time to react I kicked the Timberwolf behind me with enough force to launch it back and wreak the one behind it.

Immediately afterward I shot forward grabbing the tail of a Timberwolf and proceeding to swing it around breaking two of its brethren. Grabbing the tail of another Timberwolf I slammed them together and jumped back when a Timberwolf lunged at me.

The five remaining Timberwolves began circling. One jumped at me and soon found it's head disconnected from its body. The other four didn't care and then jumped from four directions at me. I simply flew up and slammed my four hoofs into their heads.

Well, time to start a fire. One of the few weaknesses to the Timberwolves' annoying ability to reform. Even if their wooden bodies were cut into a million pieces and a million holes were dug for each piece a Timberwolves could still reform. If you burnt the Timberwolves, though, then they'll never reform that piece.

Six minutes later a smile crept across my face as the blazing flames burnt away the Timberwolves. The enjoyment of burning Timberwolves was showing and I didn't care if anyone saw me.

"Why are you smiling when looking at the fire?" Rainbow Dash called out and then sat down exhausted.

"I'm enjoying the burning of Timberwolves," I said casually.

Confused Rainbow Dash asks, "Uhh, why and why are you burning Timberwolves?"

"After defeating a Timberwolve it will take about ten minutes for the reforming of their bodies to take place. Burning the bodies is one of the only ways to stop the process."

"Then why are you smiling?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

Ignoring the question I say, "You got here pretty fast. Do you have our stuff?"

"Yeah I am the fastest filly and I have our stuff." She took off both of the bags and then said, "What do you have in your bag? It's so heavy."

The bag she was talking about was around half her size and contained most of the essential survival things I almost always carry. "Only the essentials for survival," I say.

"Only the essentials!" Rainbow Dash says shocked, "This bag is half my size and probably weighs more than I do. I don't know anything essential that would weigh that much."

"Well, there is a shield, food, water, antidotes, two books, and a couple of other things," I say starting to remember that most ponies don't go into situations with an unnecessary amount of preparations.

"Wait, a shield is in the bag?" Rainbow Dash asked, "Is it magically or cool?"

"A shield is in the bag and it's both," I say as I walk over to my bag and take out the shield.

Rainbow Dash spoke, "That shield doesn't look cool, magically, or useful."

It certainly didn't look impressive at all. The shield was a perfectly round shield that had no extra color or pattern. It looked like a normal metal shield. "That may be true, but watch this."

Rainbow Dash's eyes widened as the shield seemingly connected with my hoof, like armor. It then proceeded to slide around my entire body shifting and changing to fit into position.

I chuckle, "I can control this shield with internal magic. I mainly use it when I don't have any armor in use because that gets in the way. The shield is pretty useful for surprise attacks and unguarded areas."

"That is cool." She says quietly.

"Anyways I have a problem to deal with and it probably won't solve itself so I have to get ready," I say while putting the shield away and grabbing my bag.

"What's the problem?" Rainbow Dash questioned curiously.

I spoke clearly, "The problem is that there are more Timberwolves that need to be dealt with."

"Why do they need to be dealt with? Why would they be a problem if they stay in the forest?" Rainbow said with a little worry in her voice.

I sigh and start speaking hoping she doesn't freak out, "Timberwolves are very stupid creatures. They rely mostly on instinct, aggressive tactics, and the reforming process to survive. The problem is that these Timberwolves showed the intelligence to stalk Ponyville and surround me. That means the Timberwolves have a leader, and that means that they'll be smarter and grow faster."

"Grow? What does that even mean?" Rainbow Dash wondered.

I replied with, "Timberwolves are magical plants. They feed off the magic of things that aren't plants except maybe themselves. A leader becomes a leader when they have too much magic and start growing into a leader Timberwolf, but most creatures call them alpha Timberwolves."

"That sounds bad." Rainbow Dash said.

"Yeah it can get very bad when multiple leaders start showing up, but I am going to deal with this so there's no need to worry. Besides alpha Timberwolves aren't hard for me to deal with," I said trying to calm her worries, but if a King Timberwolf shows up then there's nothing I could do. Though, only one of those ever existed.

"I have to go deal with the Timberwolves, so bye," I said walking away.

"Bye," Rainbow Dash responded.


	10. A Solution

Retired Warrior

Chapter 9

The Solution

Huh, why is it that almost every mission that I have been on has had something unexpected happen. If I want to help someone to their destination over a mountain, bam, a pride of manticores is in my way. What's that about recent sightings of monsters in a valley, nah, it's only a few fully grown dragons. You want me to help you find a missing pony; turns out that the pony is trapped in a dangerous cave.

Why can't I get a task that's easy for a change? I may enjoy challenging missions a lot, but does every single mission have to be life or death?

Well, not like I get much say in the matter. When I got to my tent, I started taking out my armor. While my weapons were enchanted and forged for years, my armor is very standard. A chest plate, greaves, a helmet, and chain mail to cover exposed areas. All of it was made of iron and steel. I hated having to wait days for blacksmiths to fix my old armor so I went with something simpler.

My weapons on the other hoof where masterpieces. They have all seen decades worth of battle. A tower shield, a long sword, and a short sword. The tower shield had a simple bow and arrow on the front. Its special function was that it could grow to three times its size and weight. The long sword was two and a half meters long. Its blade was silver with an arrow-shaped tip. The short was a meter long and the same as the long sword.

Each of my weapons was simple in design but excelled at what they did. The tower shield had taken the acid of a Chimera without any damage, the long sword could cut through anything, and the short sword, when thrown or lost, would return to the user.

These weapons served their purposes well and had taken decades to master. Sword fighting and shield using were a lot harder than it looked for the simple reason that most ponies weren't for battle. Sure you could train to become a capable fighter, but generally, you would be nothing compared to other species. A chimera and a dragon could face each other evenly, but your average trained pony? They would get crushed.

The only advantage, that doesn't count for most ponies, is cutie marks. Sure any pony could train to be a swords pony, but a pony with a sword cutie mark could master it in a year. I have seen it before. Recruits with those kinds of cutie marks will quickly outpace the others. Though, nowadays most ponies stopped getting battle-related cutie marks.

After preparing I set out into the forest to find the most likely place for Timberwolves to be. A swamp area. Let's hope there is no Hydra or some parasprites to deal with. When I got to the Evergreen Forests edge I began flying looking for any swamp. An hour later I reached a place that could only be described as disgusting. Poisonous green water flooding area with large bubbles forming and popping, dead-looking trees with no leaves, and an awful stench everywhere.

"Yep, they're here," I said looking at the three Timberwolves below me. Of course, an awful environment would be where awful creatures live. Analyzing the wolves I noticed they seemed to be heading to a place up ahead. Flying straight in that direction I came upon a Timberwolf den. Would any pony care if I burnt this place to the ground?

Ignoring the thought, I scanned the den and counted the Timberwolves. Eighty-two wolves, but not an Alpha Timberwolf insight. It's probably on a hunt or it's in that blocked off the cave. I have to get rid of the Timberwolves before it gets back.

Grabbing multiple firebombs from my bag, I tossed them onto different sections of the den. In ten seconds I dealt with over half of the wolves. Time for the rest.

Before any of the Timberwolves could prepare themselves I launched into a group baring my long sword down upon them, crushing them instantly. Swinging in a circle I slashed all of the Timberwolves around me and then dropped a firebomb. I flew to the next group out my shield and bashed them all away.

A Timberwolf lashes at me. I dodged and slashed back. Three wolves lunged forward hoping to catch me by surprise, but before they could get anywhere near me my sword had reached them. Kicking a Timberwolf that attacked from behind I launched forward to my next target.

By the time I finished off all the Timberwolves the small section of the swamp was burning down, but I checked and helped put the Timberwolves' bodies into the fire. After finishing off the remains of the wolves I began to wonder where the leader wolf was. It should have known by now that its pack was destroyed. While wondering this a small zzzttt.

Damn it. Did it know I was going to attack so it left decoys? Doesn't matter if I have to

get back quickly. Before I could lift off the cave opened up and a hydra stepped out.


	11. What's Lost

Retired Warrior

Chapter 10

What's Lost

The brown, hulking monstrosity of death came out and ruined any chance I had at getting back to Ponyville quickly. If I flew away it would just follow me and with its exceptional senses, it could track me. If I stayed and fought the beast then the Timberwolves would attack Ponyville.

I decided that it would be best to fight the Hydra as quickly as possible. The problem I face is that Hydra's are extremely hard to kill. To kill it, I would need to be destroyed or cut off all thirty-two of the Hydra's heads or else they would grow back in more numbers.

Observe if the Hydra I notice the scaly body is tinted green and brown, so the head shoots out poison and sand. Two heads equate to one sword swing for my long sword. I have to cut two heads off each swing sixteen times and I have to do it in five minutes or the heads grow back. Great, just great.

Before I could begin my attack the Hydra brought up its heads and opened the maws. I pulled up my shield before the poison and sand reached me. Pushing forward, the hydra jumped at me. Stopping its attack to eat me right up.

Realizing this I jumped back grabbing my short sword and threw it into one of the heads straight through. It stumbled forward and I took advantage of this by flying forwards and cutting four heads off. It's head quickly turns to fire on me. They missed and I took advantage of this opportunity to take another four heads off.

Quickly fixing its mistake the Hydra began firing two heads at a time constantly. Dodging and weaving through the blasts I grab my last firebomb and through it on the Hydra. Seven heads catch fire and the Hydra, using its sharp tail, cut off the burning heads to stop the fire from spreading.

Sixteen left. Flying upwards I began my ascent only to come starlight back down on the beast's back shattering its ribs. Its tail quickly came towards me, but with a quick swipe, the tail was gone. The now motionless Hydra then did the unexpected. Firing at itself sending me flying into a tree. The burning tree split in half.

Getting up I noticed the Hydra was charging up for an attack with all of its heads. The infamous last stand power of the Hydra. Some call it the world breaker, others, the laser beam of death, but all of the names have one thing in common. If you get hit your either dead or soon to be dead.

Flying as fast as possible I began to slash at all of the heads. Fourteen, twelve, ten, eight, six, four, two, but the last swing only cut one head off. The Hydra looked like it was smirking with the satisfaction of winning this battle, but to bad, I was also smirking. Recalling my lost short side made it shoot straight through the last Hydra head.

I would have been happy with and celebrated the success, but I have a town to save. Grabbing my swords and the shield I began flying toward Ponyville moving faster and faster until I reached Ponyville.

What I came upon was two ponies holding off the wolves, some Timberwolves burning, and that damn leader that evaded me. When I saw the two ponies I grinned. Huh, so Windy Cloud and Thunder Hothoof can still fight. The grin was short-lived, though, as they were heavily wounded.

Time to fight the leader. Rushing down a burst of speed I hit the leader with crushing force it certainly was not expecting. All of the Timberwolves then looked at me and immediately lost all sense of unity that they once had. They all forgot what they were doing and just attacked me for revenge or whatever the soulless Timberwolves care about.

With my sword in hoof, I quickly dispatched all of the Timberwolves with ease by slashing and hacking all of them. No intelligence and lack of strategy is easy to exploit. After that, I threw the leader into the already raging fire along with his pack.

"Whew, that was tough. I knew I was rusty, but this is disappointing!" Thunder Hothoof shouted out before sitting down next to his wife, "How do you keep up all this after so many years?"

"Hard work and dedication is the simple way I do it," I said.

"Plus you've been slacking off since we left the Hunters." Windy Cloud pointed out.

"I haven't been slacking off that much. Have I?" Thunder Hothoof said almost like he was trying to convince himself.

"Dear, the last time I saw you train as hard as an average day in the Hunters of Equestria was our last day as Hunters." Windy Cloud pointed out again.

"Ouch, you wound me. I just wanted to take a break off that evil workout and afterward, I didn't find the masochist in me to try that again." Thunder Hothoof spoke with a smile.

"Well, I guess it was kind of evil and I don't think that matters right now." Windy then frowned and looked at me. "What does matter is that I think the claws on the Timberwolves were poisoned. Gale do you have any antidotes?"

"I do, but I can't deliver the correct antidote if I don't see." I stared starting to worry.

"Eh, you can look at my wound," Thunder Hothoof said pointing to a large claw mark on his side, "But well I don't feel different.

I walked to Thunder Hothoof and began inspecting his wound. I picked up the odd colored liquid next to his wound with my hoof. Upon closer inspection, I saw a pinkish liquid with black spots on his wound. I grimaced. What are lullaby roses doing in the Evergreen forest! I blinked. How in the world did a Timberwolf make lullaby poison!

Windy faced looked concerned, "I have seen that face before," she seemed reluctant to say the next words, "What's the poison."

"It's lullaby poison," I say dejectedly.


	12. Can it Ever be Replaced

Retired Warrior

Chapter 11

Can it Ever be Replaced

Rushing over to my bag, I start rummaging around and quickly find the antidote I was looking for. Running back I say, "Open wide." I uncap the lids and pour the liquid down their throats.

"Do you think this will be enough?" Thunder Hothoof asked hopefully.

"Depends, how long since you got those wounds?" I asked wishing for a miracle.

"It's over then," Windy Cloud whispered dejectedly, "It's been at least forty five minutes since we started fighting and at least twenty minutes since we were wounded."

Thunder Hothoof sighed, "So we got a day to live, huh, I thought we'd have gone off peacefully," he laughed bitterly, "fate sure has a way of twisting your desires."

I spoke, "If only I had gotten here sooner. You'd both have a chance to be alive longer."

"Why weren't you here sooner? You could have gotten here easily in minutes." Windy Cloud inquired.

"The damn Timberwolves not only set up a trap bringing me far out but also unleashed a Hydra unto me!" I cried out, "Why is it always that the easiest seeming jobs have the highest casualties."

"What are we going to tell our daughter?" They both said completely ignoring me after coming to the same conclusion.

"I could..." before I could finish my thoughts a voice interrupted me.

"You guys never told me you could fight so well!" Rainbow Dash said to his parents, "You guys are so awesome! Like I always knew you were cool, but now both of you are even better! Can you teach me! Why are you both frowning? You just saved Ponyville!"

"Well, Sweetie do you remember what we have told you about Lullaby Roses?" Windy Cloud asked tears threatening to break loose.

Rainbow Dash looked confused, "you mean like those purplish flowers that grow on mountains."

"Yes, those. You see those flowers have a special property when combined with other ingredients. It makes a thing called Lullaby Poison," Windy Cloud said softly.

Rainbow Dash was not smiling anymore, "What is the special property?"

"It… it… it…" Windy was crying now.

Before she could finish I interrupted solemnly, "It kills ponies in an hour by putting them to sleep. If the antidote isn't given quickly enough then all it would do is delay the inevitable," at this point I was struggling to get the words out and Rainbow Dash was frowning, "The.. the Timberwolves had Lullaby poison on their claws, and both of your parents are poisoned."

"There is nothing we can do about it," Thunder Hothoof said sadly.

Rainbow Dash with tears in her eyes came running up to her parents for a hug. They hugged her back.

"Well I guess this is the end of your old man," Thunder Hothoof said trying to make a joke but failing, "if my grave doesn't say "He died as he lived, asleep" wait no that doesn't make sense, it should be "Well, looks like Gales training failed" no that's bad, err how about "He wished for a perfect family and he got it." In the end, he was smiling a bit.

"That's sweet and all, but can you stop talking about graves," hissed Windy and her husband, "we have a crying daughter."

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just trying to lighten the situation." Thunder Hothoof replied in a whisper.

"We have to get to the hospital soon. I don't think to die on the street will do any pony well." I said.

"Well unless your," Windy Cloud guarded at her husband, "Anyway, let's go to the hospital. Might as well pay an absurd amount of," another glare came his way.

"Don't worry. Any costs for the trip to the hospital will be paid by me in full. I'll even pay for the funeral and whatever your daughter wants," I said.

"Thank you," spoke Windy Cloud still tearing up, "We don't want to worry our daughter with financial issues."

Walking to the hospital was dreadful. Ponies started at us, Thunder Hothoof and Windy Cloud we're talking and comforting their daughter, and I was thinking of all the better ways I could have dealt with this situation.

When we got to the hospital a receptionist called out to us, "Hey Windy and Hothoof, what do you need?"

I spoke quickly "They are dying and I have no idea if the hospital can delay or get rid of the Lullaby Poison in them,"

The receptionist fell out of her chair in shock, "We have to get the antidote quickly and a doctor stat," pointing to a door, "Both of you get into room one, we'll see what we can do."

Four hours later and the hospital did everything in their ability to help. They tried everything from getting rid of the contaminated blood, covering the wound, and even giving a stronger more potent antidote. None of it could fix the problem at hand and only slowed the process down.

Entering the room I saw Windy Cloud reading a book to Rainbow Dash, while Thunder Hothoof was reenacting what was being done. I simply watched for hours as their activities carried on and on. They did everything possible until it was late at night and Rainbow Dashe's body couldn't keep her awake anymore.

Windy Cloud looked over at me and said, "When Rainbow Dash wakes up tomorrow we won't be around anymore."

"Yeah, I know the doctors told me," I said staring out the window, "if you want I can keep you guys company all night long."

"That would be nice," said Windy Cloud with a yawn

"I have been thinking Gale," I cast him a sarcastic shocked face and smile, "har har har, no but seriously I'm writing down our will at the moment and I keep thinking about what to give to who. If you didn't know Gale, but both of us don't have any family left in the world and I know how you have always wanted a child. We were wondering if you would like to take custody over Rainbow Dash?" Windy Cloud nodded in agreement.

I was shocked, "What me? Would I even make a good parent? I've never even taken care of a filly and I have a dangerous job to do. What makes you want to choose me?"

Windy Cloud chuckled, "Never taken care of any children he says. Now because when we were in the Hunters of Equestria you treated every pony in it as a family and I have distinct memories of you cheering up any filly you saw. You are more than enough qualified to take care of a filly with your infinite wisdom, kind attitude, and strict but fair teaching."

Thunder Hothoof spoke with a grin, "So what do you say, Gale? Want to adopt Rainbow Dash as your daughter. You'll get all of our awesome stuff."

"Yes, I do think that I will adopt her."


	13. A Connection

Retired Warrior

Chapter 12

A Connection

Waking up to the sound of crying is always unpleasant. I mumbled to me myself "Huh, so they are gone now."

Looking around I saw Rainbow Dash crying over two stretchers with white sheets covering the ponies underneath. The nurse checking the bodies looked extremely uncomfortable with this situation. After a few minutes, another nurse came in to take over for the other nurse leaving the first nurse to do her job.

In a few minutes, she came over to me and asked, "Are you Gale Thunderstorm, the caretaker for Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah," I replied.

"Good, good, because you're required to sign some papers and take a few tests to see if you are the correct choice in taking care of Rainbow Dash. The hospital will be sending someone to you shortly," after she finished speaking she walked out, then shortly after the other nurse followed.

Am I good enough to take care of a filly? Can I take care of the responsibility? Will Rainbow Dash even like me?

Walking over to Rainbow Dash I noticed she wasn't as sad. Sure she had some tears and sniffles, but it wasn't as bad as earlier. "So uhh… do you want to talk about anything?"

Rainbow Dash's frown twitched, "No."

"Did your parents leave anything behind… err or something like a letter?" I asked.

Rainbow Dash sniffled, "Yeah it's on the bed."

Three pieces of paper were on the bed. Two seemed to be a letter while the other was a will. "Should I read Cloudy's letter, or Thunder's letter first," I wondered to myself not expecting an answer. I didn't get one. Picking up Windy Cloud's letter I began reading.

_Dear,_

_Rainbow Dash_

_If there is one thing that I want you to know sweetie is that I love you dearly. Even now that I'm gone I'll love you more than anyone. You brought more joy and happiness in my life than even your dad. I wish that_

_I could be around longer to see you grow up into a fine mare and I would have loved to have grandchildren so don't disappoint. Find the perfect stallion like your dad. _

_Your loving mother,_

_Windy Cloud_

_P.S. I love you more than your dad does._

I gently place down the letter and sighed. Windy Cloud was always a loving pony and she always had the dream of having grandchildren. Why I have no idea, but maybe find out. Picking up Thunder Horhoof's letter I began reading.

_Dear,_

_My awesome daughter Rainbow Dash_

_Rainbow Dash I know what you're probably thinking right now. Why did this happen to me? Why did my parents have to die? Well, the simple answer to that is life sucks, but that is okay. I hope you take that out of this._

_I hope you see me as the best dad ever and that I did a good job raising you. We may have been bad at times like brining you on boring trips or being a little too supportive in your achievements, but I wish I had more time. Like an infinite amount of more time. I also want you to remember the most important thing in a relationship, loyalty. Even though your mother would argue that it's the second most important thing in a relationship._

_Signed the coolest dad,_

_Thunder Hothoof_

_P.S. Just so you know, Gale Thunderstorm will probably be your adoptive parents so be nice. He is the best at taking care of children, but the worst at talking to them. It's hilarious watching him barely function talking to children. Anyways I hope you know that this incident isn't his fault for not being there. He had a Hydra to deal with and those beasts are annoying. Plus he had saved us more times than one._

_P.P.S I love you more than your mom does._

Of course, Thunder Hothoof had a longer letter. Thunder Hothoof was a stallion of way too many words. Windy Cloud liked things short and sweet, which Thunder Hothoof always said it was just like her.

"What do you think is the most important part of having a good friendship?" I asked.

Rainbow Dash thought it over for a bit before answering quietly, "Kindness."

"Really, why is that?" I asked curiously as I'd think Rainbow Dash would take after her father the most.

Rainbow Dash didn't hesitate to answer the question, "My mother always said kindness is what makes the world go round. She said… said that if every creature showed kindness then the world would be a better place," Rainbow Dash then smiled, "Dad would always respond with a clever joke and then mom would laugh and argue against him. Then it somehow always ended up with me making the decision."

"Huh, they never changed," I spoke reminiscing about their time in the Hunters of Equestria.

"Were they always like that," Rainbow Dash said wiping away the tears.

I laughed remember the crazy times, "Yeah. Even in the Hunters of Equestria, they would always have that argument. It would inevitably lead to others chiming in with what they thought was important. Things like generosity, empathy, honesty, laughter, respect, love, patience and some of the weird ponies said magic, which made no sense to me," I chuckled, "Like you, it always ended up with me becoming the deciding factor. My answer was always it's all-important."

"But," Rainbow Dash said.

I smiled, "But I always believed one thing was the most important. Loyalty to me is the most important."

"Why is loyalty so important to you?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

"There are many reasons, but the main reason is it pains me the most when a friend, comrade, sibling, parent or any meaningful pony leave you in your time of need. In the Hunters of Equestria, the number one cause of deaths was one pony or ponies abandoning others."

"But why would any pony do that and didn't you say dangerous missions were the number one cause?" Rainbow Dash asked shocked.

"While I did say dangerous missions were the cause of most deaths, ponies abounding others in said missions cause the deaths. You wouldn't believe the number of times I had to tell families death was caused by ponies just leaving. A lot of ponies lack a good amount of loyalty. As soon as their friend was in trouble they wouldn't help them significantly. Sure words of encouragement and pep talks help, but would they sacrifice their well being, money, time, or life for their friends. Most likely not, but those that do are the best ponies I have ever seen in my life."

"Does loyalty really makes ponies that are amazing?" Rainbow Dash asked with wonder in her eyes.

I grin, "You had the two best examples in your life. Your parents were the best of the best. They saved countless lives and protected so much. Even after retirement, they were Wonderbolts. Those guys are basically the Hunters of Equestria except they perform shows and only focus mainly on reconstruction and helping others."

"My parents were really awesome? They were really awesome. No, they are really awesome!" Rainbow Dash smile shone brightly.

I hyped her up, "That's right they are awesome and they'll be so glad that when their daughter grows up that she'll be even better!"

"You know you aren't as bad at talking to filly's then Dad said you were," Rainbow Dash stated.

"Eh well, I have grown over the past hour. Anyways, I have to go get your adoption papers and sign a few things. Just you wait because soon you'll be able to say you had three of the best damn fliers alive as a family."

Rainbow Dash then smiled a smile that could only be described as too cute for my eyes to bear.


	14. Adapting to Change

Retired Warrior

Chapter 13

Adapting to Change

I left the hospital having completed the first step of adoption. To say I was left mental exhausted would be an understatement. Two hours of what could be considered an interrogation for adopting a filly. I either got a mare who took her job very seriously or I underestimated the process of adoption.

Either way, I do say that I think I did a fine job answering all of the questions to the best of my abilities. Though, this is only the first step of three in Equestria's adoption system. The first step is being interrogated to see if you are qualified for raising a filly. Honestly, some of the questions seemed unnecessary. Like, do they need to know where I was born?

The second step is random inspections throughout the year to check on the filly and the "guardian." The inspectors come at random times throughout the years to check on living conditions, health, and other important factors. Being curious I asked how the adoption agency could afford to do such thorough inspections. The mare simply laughed and told me that most fillies become orphans because their parents died and even then that rarely happens.

The third and final step is considered the easiest step for some and the hardest step for others. This is the case since in this step the inspector goes to the filly directly and questions them. Instead of the usual questions about health and how is your guardian treating you, they ask more personal questions. Some examples would be, do you like your guardian, do you wish to stay with your guardian and other things like that.

I thought the system could be broken with the guardian bribing the inspector or the guardian forcing the filly to act a certain way, so I voiced my concerns. The inspector adorned a serious expression and told me such methods could never work. I asked why. She said that they trained the inspectors to spot lies, forced behavior, odd reactions, and other unnatural mannerisms. Then she went on to explain how stupid a pony would have to be to force or bribe an inspector to give a good report. Inspectors are hoof-picked, trained, and paid very graciously.

Huh, wonder when the inspections will start? A month, a week, tomorrow? It would be quite interesting to see them at my doorstep so early. Well more like tent-step in this case, but would that affect my inspections? Turning to face Rainbow Dash, who was walking right beside me, I asked, "Would you rather sleep in a tent or a hotel?"

"I've never camped outside before so I wouldn't know what it is like," Rainbow Dash responded earnestly.

"Really? I'd think you would have done it before due to your need for adventure. It's a safe way to get an adventure," I replied honestly, "why haven't you tried it before?"

Rainbow Dash answered with a shrug and said, "In Cloudsdale you can't really camp and anytime my par… parents and I went on I trip we wouldn't camp for various that my da… dad came up with."

"Hmm, I can definitely see that camping on clouds wouldn't be an adventure or all that interesting in any way," I spoke thoughtfully, "but why did Thunder Hothoof come up with excuses to not camp?"

Rainbow Dash chuckled, "Mo… Mom told me the reason. She said that camping reminded him of the Survival Test and that he doesn't camp unless it's necessary."

"That sounds exactly like him," I laughed hysterically, "I remember the day he asked me to do the Survival Test early. He had heard of a test that some hunters called the week of pain, so he came up to me to take the test. I told him he wasn't prepared at all for the week. He proclaimed that he was ready. After he said that I explained the test and its risks. Hothoof seemed more hesitant afterward, but that didn't stop him."

"Why did he even take the test in the first place if you kept saying how hard it would be?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

"Well he wanted to prove himself to be an excellent hunter to impress another newly joined recruit," I explained.

Rainbow Dash spoke with a little confusion, "Then what happened to make him hate camping so much? It would have to have been if he… he still hates camping."

I rolled my eyes, "Bad is an understatement for what happened, but to explain why it was so bad I'll have to explain the test. Do you want to hear it?"

Rainbow shook her head up and down with extreme ferocity, "Of course I want to hear it! Mom never told me what happened and Dad was always embarrassed to even share the story!"

A smile crept onto my face, "You mostly have to survive an entire week in a place called Rainbow Falls. The test is relatively simple at first glance, but it is grueling. Rainbow Falls is full of dangerous creatures, you are not allowed to bring anything with you, and the temperatures in Rainbow Falls ranged from freezing to burning depending on the season."

"That is crazy! Why would any pony want to do that early? Wait, why would any pony want to do that?" Rainbow Dash yelled out wondering why her father was so stupid back then. Even she was not adventurous enough to try that.

I laughed, "Your father apparently. It gets worse, or funnier depending on who you ask because while surviving is priority number one you also have three tasks to complete. In that week you must hunt down one of the bigger monsters, create a shelter, and have a stable source of food. Water was easy to get so that wasn't an issue. Now you wondered why any pony would do that. Well, it's very simple. This is the final test you take to become a fully-fledged hunter. What are the perks of a hunter you may ask? Your pay is increased, you can retire whenever, tools and supplies are given for free, you can lead and train recruits, and your family is given life insurance if you die before retirement."

"Woah, that is a lot of rewards! It must be awesome to become a full me ever of the Hunters of Equestria! How many were there?" Rainbow Dash asked.

I spoke with immense pride in my voice, "Around two thousand for the entirety of the Hunters of Equestria and all of the years it's been around. I'm not going to be modest, because I think that these ponies throughout the years are some of the strongest ponies to ever live. They might even be the strongest excluding ponies like the princesses, the pillars, and other notable examples."

"That is awesome, but you never answered my question of what happened to my father in the test," Rainbow Dash said a little annoyed.

"Ah yes, Thunder Hothoof's test results. Sorry for getting distracted. When I began the test I was the first watcher of the test," before Rainbow Dash could ask I spoke, "watchers were hunters that watched the test and observed the test taker. This was mostly for safety and test-taking purposes. The first day of the test could only be described as a mess for Thunder Hothoof. He barely got water and a makeshift tent by the end of the day. At night his tent collapsed unto him and his water was stolen. He woke up tired and not at all for the days ahead of him. Anything he made would collapse, break, or be stolen. Food and water he acquired would be stolen or spoiled. Finally ever monster, even the weakest of ones, could easily beat him. He never gave up, but most watchers watching him wished he did. It was like watching a pony with no legs rolling around on the ground and not being able to help him."

"Yesh, it was that bad," Rainbow spoke understating it a lot, "No wonder he never wanted to talk about it. Did my dad ever retake the test?"

"Yes, both your mom and dad did it years later and both of them easily finished it. Watching his second try was a blast, because everything he did, he did it with a face of confusion and wounded. He was probably thinking about how he even struggled with something so easy."

After finishing my talk we finally arrived at my in-progress house. "I am currently paying for that house to be built," I said pointing my hoof at the house in the distance, "but currently I'm living in a tent close to the house." I pointed my hoof at the tent.

"Who's that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

I raised my eyebrow, "You don't remember him? You met Frederick Stonewall recently."

"I don't remember names all that well. Plus I barely even talked to him," Rainbow Dash argued.

"He's the stallion building my house," I said calmly.

"Ohhhhhh, that stallion. I thought his name was Fred Stonehenge," Rainbow Dash replied with a cute smile.

I sighed. Hopefully, this won't be a lasting issue.


	15. Trying to be a Dad

The Retired Warrior

Chapter 14

Trying to be a Dad

I woke up feeling energized. Yesterday I set up my extra tent and Rainbow Dash "camped" for the first time. When she fell asleep I checked my supplies and realized I have absolutely nothing for Rainbow Dash. I do have military packets of food, but I don't think that would be up to her liking. Now I don't think the food is bad, but others would passionately disagree.

Today I finished my exercises early and traveled into Ponyville. When I was walking around I realized two major flaws in my plan. No pony wakes up at five and I have absolutely no idea what a filly would enjoy. I sigh, "This is going to be harder than I thought."

After thirty minutes of just walking around the town started waking up. Ponies began walking around and stores opened. By this time I had a plan. I'll just but a lot of food. If it is a fruit, a vegetable, grains, or dairy then I'm buying it. Meat will be avoided since most ponies hate it. Personally, food is food, but I can see why they wouldn't want to eat it.

Anyway, it's time to shop. Huh, I just realized problem three. I haven't shopped in years. "Oh Celestia, this is going to be a pain," I spoke softly to myself while walking towards the nearest stall.

In one hour my statement held strong. Sure, I got a plethora of things to eat, but the process of getting that food was in short awkward. The experience was like you got a new job, but you had no idea what to do in the job. It only got worse when I had to hold onto more and more bags. It wasn't heavy, but I forgot my satchel so I had the choice of hanging all the bags over my neck or putting them on my bag. Both equally annoying.

In the end, I become enlightened in the boring process of waiting in line. Seriously, how was it that most of my time was spent waiting in line when the town was barely awake? Either I was unlucky and just happened to go to all of the popular stores or it's always this bad. Well, I have to get used to this, since this won't be the last time I go shopping

When I came back to the tents Rainbow Dash was still asleep. I tapped her lightly with my hoof and said softly, "It's time to wake up Rainbow Dash."

She groaned and replied sleepily, "Go away Dad I'm trying to sleep," before turning over to face away from me.

I rolled my eyes and nudged her less softly this time. No response. I begin to take off her blanket, but she pulls back.

"Ugh, I'm trying to sleep and I'm in such a comfortable position," Rainbow Dash said tugging her hardest to get the blanket back.

"Guess you don't want any food," I say walking back trying to convince her to wake up.

"Mmmmmm, food," Rainbow Dash mumbled.

"Yep, guess I can eat all of your food then," I replied loudly. Then I rummaged through the bags looking for a pan and eggs.

"Fine, I'll wake up! Just don't eat my food," Rainbow Dash shouted before bolting out of her tent.

I chuckled, "Don't worry I wasn't going to eat your food."

"Hey, why did you wake me up if the food isn't cooked?" Rainbow Dash asked a little annoyed.

"I did not know what you would like," I then pointed to the mountain of bags behind me, "so I bought a lot of food. I'm having eggs. If you don't want that then you can look through the bags."

"I will also have eggs so cook some for me," Rainbow Dash said in a quick reply.

"Okay, just is down and wait," I replied and started a fire.

We sat in silence for a few minutes before Rainbow Dash asked, "What do you like?"

I pondered the question before answering, "I like a lot of things, but I like the Hunters of Equestria, fighting, beautiful places, traveling, and sleep the most."

"You enjoy fighting?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

I spoke earnestly, "I absolutely adore it. The thrill and enjoyment I get from fighting compares to almost nothing else to me. Though, I may love it so much, because I also enjoy the competition."

"Competition?" Rainbow Dash said confused at what fighting has to do with competition.

"Yes competition," I said, "Two ponies or creatures facing off against each other in a test of skill, strength, intelligence, or even who can tell a better joke. Fighting can be boiled down into a competition between two creatures."

Rainbow Dash spoke honestly, "I sort of get it now. I like competition too. It's awesome to win, but it's also so much fun to compete against others."

I nodded, "That is true. Now that I have told you what I liked I want to hear what you like."

Rainbow Smiled, "I like a lot of stuff. Food, racing, sleeping, flying, the Hunters of Equestria and the wonderbolts are my absolute favorite though."

"Hmm, it's nice to hear you like the Hunters of Equestria," I say happily.

Rainbow began fangirling, "They are awesome just like the wonderbolts. At flight school one of the subjects is history and they teach all about various things, but the best is when they teach about the wonderbolts and Hunters of Equestria. You guys have done so many cool things and have saved Equestria at least twice! Best of all they teach about some of the greatest fliers!"

"Who are these greatest fliers?" I ask curiously.

Rainbow Dash was bursting with excitement, "Only the legendary fliers like commander Hurricane, Quick Fether, Flash Magnus, and you! There is an entire chapter just about the many things you've done!"

"Wait, they have history lessons about me?" I asked shocked.

"Why wouldn't they teach about you?" Rainbow Dash spoke with great zeal, "You have done so much good in the world and have saved so many lives! It would be disrespectful to not teach about you!"

"Well I'd think they would do it after I died," I mumbled before placing the cooked eggs onto a plate, "how many do you want?"

"All of them," Rainbow Dash respondents before she practically ripped the plate the eggs out of my hoofs.

I chuckle, "Hey, I need to eat too."

"Just cook more eggs," Rainbow Dash said with her mouth full of food.

"Alright, but afterward we are going to find you things to buy," I say cracking a few more eggs over the pan.


End file.
